Resolutions
by Robert DeWarren
Summary: **SPOILERS** After activating the RFI and sacrificing himself, Cole gets some closure from freinds and foe in the next life. Cole/Trish Cole/Ku Cole-Nix friendship.


Alright everyone, I know I haven't updated lately, and I apologize, but I've been working on stuff and generally enjoying my summer break. Anyway, I just finished inFamous 2 at 3:40 a.m. and I got on ff and noticed there were no stories. Maybe Ill get to post the first IF2 fic?

Note: Do not have to have played either game to read this, but it certainly helps.

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WARNING! SPOILERS FOR BOTH GAMES!

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Cole shook his head, trying to get some of the haziness out of his brain. Opening his eyes, he stared up into a perfectly white sky, and immediately he felt slightly disoriented with nothing to focus on.

"Well, well, it seems the new arrival is waking up." The young man turned his head towards the sound of the voice and instantly felt hatred and confusion run through his veins. Kessler stood there, looking completely unchanged. He even still had that perfectly clean white hooded trench coat on. "I was beginning to worry about you Cole. But then again, I shouldn't have, should I? After all, you have shown a remarkable resilience towards all known, and some unknown, methods of hurting someone."

Cole leapt to his feet, and promptly regretted it as his stomach lurched. "What are you doing here Kessler? Where are we? I seem to remember killing you, care to explain that?" At this the old man laughed at something that Cole apparently didn't understand

"You did kill me Cole. I am quite dead. And so are you." Kessler spoke in that same voice he always did, as if he knew absolutely everything that is happening, has happened, and will happen, and he planned every minute of it. "You see the IRF that you used to kill the beast did it's job. You and every other Conduit on earth are dead."

At the end of that statement, Cole was instantly afraid. Then another emotion hit him: relief. "You mean I did it? The beast is dead?" He almost couldn't believe it. The thing that had paraded down the eastern seaboard in a march of destruction was gone.

Kessler nodded at the young man. "Yes Cole, it is dead. And we all have you to thank for it. I must admit, I had hoped you would be able to destroy it on your own, but it seems as if that such a creature would be almost unstoppable without resorting to drastic measures."

At that Cole glared up at the old man. "'Drastic measures'? What _I _did was 'drastic'? What about your measures? Blowing up half of the historic district, killing Trish, torturing Sasha, spraying all of Empire city with poison? You even went _back in time_ and you dare to have the… the…. _nerve_ to call my measures _drastic?_"

Kessler nodded towards his younger self. "Indeed I do Cole. My methods may have been extreme, but if you didn't notice, you caused a worldwide event. Did you think that the RFI blast was limited to New Marais? No Cole, you killed Conduits all over the world with it." Kessler watched as Cole blanched from the thought of what he had done. "Now you see Cole. Now you see my reasoning. You may not like the ramifications of your decision but consider this: if you had not, you would have saved one in a thousand people by joining the Beast. With this, you saved nine hundred and ninety-nine people in a thousand. _Think of that Cole!_ The decision wasn't easy, but you made it because it was the right choice!"

Cole bowed his head in thought, listening to the man who he had killed. "That's why you did it, isn't it?" Looking up into Kessler's eyes, he continued. "I think I understand now, at least a little. You killed the people of Empire City, put them through all of that, so you could save the world. You've told me as much, back in Empire, but I never really understood. I didn't think of how anyone could sacrifice or hurt people. I thought that any good person would find a way around it, find a way to save everyone." Cole looked away, his voice barely a mutter. "But sometimes, there isn't a way to save everyone, is there? Sometimes you just have to save the most you can."

Cole felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Kessler standing over him. "I'm afraid you're right, Cole. Sometimes you must kill a few people so a city may live. Or in our case, kill thousands so several billion may live. It's the people like us who are both revered and hated. But mostly, we are just not understood. And how can we, who have held powers that should be reserved for beings far more intelligent than us, blame them? Only those who have held the fate of the world in their hands and made the right decisions can truly understand our position."

Kessler looked down on the young man as small tear managed to work it's way down his face. "But what's the point of a world where everyone that is capable of the right things are dead? Me, you, Kuo, even Nix. Without people like us to make the hard decisions, how does the world keep going?"

The old man seemed to think a moment before answering. "Kuo at first sided with the Beast out of fear. But she eventually approved of your decision to stop him. Nix after all the selfishness and wanton destruction she reveled in decided to sacrifice herself. Anyone can become anything, Cole, provided the right situation. All it takes is the right stimulus." Cole nodded, and for the first time in what felt like ages, smiled, and was utterly shocked when his old, grizzled counterpart did the same thing. "Although Cole, I must admit, I am slightly jealous of you." At the young mans confused look, he continued. "After Trish, I couldn't really focus on anyone else. I spent some time with Sasha, but that was merely a distraction. You had something special with Kuo, I could see it."

Cole blushed crimson. "No I… she was just… we didn't…" The denials halted as Kessler let loosed his dry, tired laugh, although it seemed to have a bit more life in it than usual.

"Do not deny it Cole, I am you, remember? I know exactly what was going through your mind at all points, even if I have never met her myself. I could see the way you looked at her, the way you went out of your way in a fight to protect her. And I saw the way you pulled your punches when she fought you. I must say, she is rather beautiful, isn't she?" At the younger man's obvious embarrassment, confusion, and guilt, Kessler continued. "Do not feel like you have insulted Trish's memory by loving another. She would want you to be happy. I'm only sorry that you did not get more time with Kuo before fate once again decided to punish you for crimes not your's."

Cole saddened immediately. "It doesn't matter whether Trish would be insulted or not. After all, Kuo's dead too now. We all are." Both Kessler and Cole bowed their heads at that knowledge, before a feminine voice interrupted.

"I really didn't mind, Cole." Spinning on his heel, Cole watched as Trish stepped toward him, that same content smile on her face that she had when she had died. Standing there in the same doctor's outfit she had been wearing after falling to her death, Cole thought she never looked more beautiful. Planting a small kiss on Coles lips she turned to Kessler and slapped him. "That's for killing me." the brunette deadpanned, before grabbing him in a hug that Cole was sure would have killed and non-conduit. "And that was for making all the hard decisions to ensure the worlds safety." Turning back to Cole she smiled up at him, before enveloping him in another hug and kissing him gently.

As they resurfaced for air, Kessler cleared his throat. "If it's any comfort Trish, I did not mean for Amy to get caught in the blast. That was something that I regretted for a long time." Trish's eyes were downcast as she remembered her sister that was killed in the ray-sphere explosion caused by Kessler.

"I know, but it still hurts, even though I get to see her now." Trish had a bittersweet smile on her face, as she stared out into nothing. All three of them just stood there a moment, soaking in each other, before once again disturbed by a woman's voice.

"So it seems as if I finally get to meet he wonderful Trish." Turning towards the new voce, all three of them spotted the young Asian woman walking toward them with frost on her hands. "I'm afraid it took me a bit to locate you three. Being recently deceased is quite confusing." She stopped a bit away from where Trish had her arm wrapped around Cole, who seemed greatly at odds with himself. Finally the brunette rolled her eyes and gave him a shove toward Kuo, who caught him in a kiss. "That's for forgiving me" She whispered, before catching his lips again. "And that was just for being the magnificent person you are."

Trish smiled at the pair. "Kuo, I want to thank you for everything you've done for him. He needed someone to love, filled that role perfectly." The Asian girl grinned at her.

"Oh, so you loved me Cole?" She asked the sputtering young man. "That's alright, I think I can return the feelings." With that she reached up, causing Cole to reflexively flinch. "It's okay now, I got the chills under control." She said with a smile, before cupping his face. The two stared into each others eyes a moment, before letting go. Kuo seemed to remember something and laughed. "Oh yes, I saw Nix on the way over here. She said something along the lines of 'Tell the Demon he done good, ya? If he ever need help again, I come back from dead and help him burn some folk.'" The entire group began laughing at the poor impersonation of the black woman, before Kessler called them to order.

The old man cleared his throat, causing all of them to stop. "Now, I'm afraid our time draws to a close, for the moment at least." Both of the women seemed saddened by this, but Cole only confused.

"Hold on, what do you mean? We're dead! We have all the time in the world!" The younger man asked, looking between the other three.

Kuo reached up and cupped his cheek, delivering one more kiss, leaving a stunned Cole an easy prey for Trish to do the same. The Asian girl whispered "Remember Cole, we love you…" right before the brunette finished with "… And we always will."

"What do you mean-" Cole started, before he felt something like fire running through his veins. Arching his back forward, he spread his arms out in a reflexive gesture as Kessler stepped forward.

"I'm afraid Cole, that I have a bit more bad news. You do not have the opportunity to rest yet. There is still so much to be done, you see. The people of the world need a leader Cole. And you are that leader. The pain you are feeling now is that of a lightning bolt striking your body." Here Kessler paused and gave a look of pure sorrow towards his younger self. "I wish it didn't have to be this ay Cole, I truly do. If it were up to me you would have your rest, but it was not my decision to make. It feels awful to leave you up to fate, but for the first time in many decades, I am powerless. For so long I have steered the events of the entire world to suit my cause, but now I am as helpless as any other. Please do not believe this was my doing, or the doing of either Trish or Kuo. All of did our best to relieve you of this responsibility, but to no avail. I'm afraid it's time for your respite to end."

As he finished this sentence, the three of them began to go out of focus. Cole watched as Kessler gave him one last apologizing look, while to either side Trish and Kuo cried for him. Then with a massive thunderclap and an impact that felt like being punched by the Beast, they were gone.

Sitting up with a groan, he rubbed his head. He tasted saltwater, and could feel a hard metal beneath him. To his right he noticed a charred and smoking coffin like that looked like… _like it had been struck by lightning._

"I can't believe it brother." Cole spun around, giving himself a pounding headache, to look at Zeke as he stood with a shocked look on his face. "Looks like you ruined your coffin. I paid a lot of money for that." Cole grinned.

He missed Trish and Kuo. Even Nix and the old John. But it seemed that no matter what happened, and what he had to go through, he would always have his pudgy sidekick.

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Hope you all enjoyed! I might write a sequel if anyone wants it, but not sure. Also, this is my longest One shot to date! Woo!

Anyway, please review!


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